Linux Mint 21.2, codenamed “Victoria,” is the latest long-term support (LTS) release of the popular Linux distribution. With support planned until 2027, this release brings a range of updated software, refinements, and exciting new features designed to enhance your desktop experience.
Linux Mint 21.2 Victoria Changes
Slick Greeter: Improved Login Screen
One notable improvement is the Slick Greeter, responsible for the login screen. It now supports multiple keyboard layouts, allowing users to switch between different layouts conveniently. The indicator located in the top-right corner of the screen provides access to a menu where users can select their preferred layout. System layouts defined in /etc/default/keyboard are listed first for easy access, followed by a sub-menu of all supported layouts. Additionally, touchpad support has been improved, with tap-to-click being detected and enabled automatically in the login screen. Users can also configure the layout used for Onboard, the on-screen keyboard.
Software Manager: Streamlined Software Installation
The Software Manager, a central tool for managing software installations, has received a user interface refresh. It now offers a more modern and visually appealing look. The list of featured applications has been updated to include Flatpaks, expanding the range of available software options. The scoring system in the Software Manager has also been improved to provide better visibility to new trending apps.
Pix Image Viewer: Enhanced Viewing and Editing
Pix, the image viewer and organizer, has undergone significant updates. It has been rebased on gThumb 3.12.2, adopting the new gThumb UI, which utilizes header bars and buttons instead of toolbars and menu bars. While this change may require a slight learning curve for newcomers, the new UI design offers a cleaner and more intuitive user experience. Pix 3.0 introduces 168 new features or user-visible changes, including better performance with faster image loading and navigation, support for AVIF/HEIF and JXL formats, improved support for GIF, RAW, and TIFF images, enhanced zoom controls, larger thumbnail size options, customizable keyboard shortcuts, and more advanced image editing tools.
Improved “Look and Feel”
The “Look and Feel” of Linux Mint 21.2 has also received attention. Folder icons now feature beautiful two-tone designs without stripes, and additional color variants have been introduced for popular colors. The tooltip design has been standardized across various GTK versions and Cinnamon, taking inspiration from Adwaita and featuring larger margins and a cleaner appearance. Titlebar buttons have been realigned for better visual consistency.
Gesture Support: Enhanced Touch Input
Linux Mint 21.2 introduces Gesture Support, allowing users to perform gestures on touchpads, touchscreens, and tablets for window management, workspace management, tiling, and media controls. This feature enhances the user’s ability to interact with the system using touch input.
Cinnamon 5.8: Styles and Notifications
Cinnamon 5.8, the desktop environment of Linux Mint, introduces a new concept called “styles.” Styles offer up to three modes (mixed, dark, and light) and various color variants to provide users with easily switchable and visually appealing themes. The redesigned Cinnamon notifications now feature accent colors, and symbolic icons are preferred whenever possible.
Other Notable Improvements
Other notable improvements include the ability to resize the main menu, experimental theme support for bump map and blur effects, the option to disable notifications for low-level battery-connected devices, multi-threaded thumbnails in Nemo for faster loading of directories with a large number of media files, and an upgrade to CJS, the Cinnamon Javascript interpreter, to make use of the latest SpiderMonkey version.
Enhanced Security and Compatibility
Warpinator, the file-sharing tool designed for local networks, has undergone security hardening based on a review by the SUSE security team. Changes were made to isolate Warpinator from the filesystem, prevent potential security issues, and ensure files are only written within the dedicated download folder. Landlock and bubblewrap technologies were also implemented to guarantee folder isolation, adding an extra layer of security. In terms of compatibility, Linux Mint 21.2 now fully supports HEIF and AVIF image files. Xreader, the document viewer, also adds support for Adobe Illustrator documents. Additionally, Blueman, the Bluetooth management utility, has been upgraded to version 2.3.5.
Stability and Long-Term Support
With Linux Mint 21.2, the development team remains committed to a long-term support strategy. Future versions of Linux Mint until 2024 will be based on the same package base, making it effortless for users to upgrade. This focus on stability ensures that the development team can concentrate on further refining and improving the existing release, providing users with a reliable and robust operating system.
Conclusion Linux Mint 21.2 “Victoria” Cinnamon Edition
Overall, Linux Mint 21.2 “Victoria” Cinnamon Edition offers an impressive range of enhancements and improvements. From the revamped login screen and Software Manager to the updated Pix image viewer and the refined desktop environment, this release strives to provide a more comfortable and enjoyable user experience. With its LTS status and commitment to stability, Linux Mint 21.2 is an excellent choice for both new and experienced Linux users.
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